The present invention generally relates to waterfowl decoy devices, and in its preferred embodiments more specifically relates to waterfowl decoy devices with movable wings and feet.
Waterfowl decoys have long been used by hunters in an effort to attract ducks and other waterfowl to a particular body of water or to a particular location in a body of water. Traditionally, such decoys have been made as inanimate structures that are placed on a body of water and allowed to float passively thereon, without movement of any kind. In the past, passive stationary decoys have been reasonably effective in attracting waterfowl to land in proximity to the decoy or decoys. However, waterfowl adapt to changes in their environment, and in response to increased hunting pressure many waterfowl have become more cautious in their behavior and are less likely to be attracted by stationary decoys. It appears that many waterfowl have learned to distinguish the difference between live birds and stationary decoys. The primary difference between live birds and traditional decoys is motion. Live waterfowl are constantly moving their bodies, flapping their wings and paddling their feet.
Attempts have been made in the past to overcome the problems associated with stationary decoys, and decoys that exhibit various forms of motion are known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,799,960 to Riley discloses a decoy with a motor driven propeller and movable head. Other examples of propeller driven decoys include U.S. Pat. No. 2,814,146 to Propp; U.S. Pat. No. 2,835,064 to Webb; U.S. Pat. No. 3,074,195 to Vanderpool; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,000,128 to McAda. U.S. Pat. No. 2.443,040 to Jones and U.S. Pat. No. 2,704,416 to Laird disclose decoys with fully submerged paddle mechanisms to impart movement to a decoy. Other examples include U.S. Pat. No. 2,747,314 to McGregor, which discloses a decoy apparatus with movable wings and head; U.S. Pat. No. 2,480,390, which discloses a decoy with movable wings; U.S. Pat. No. 4,896,448, which discloses a decoy with movable wings; and British Patent No. 383,031, which discloses a bird decoy with movable wings.
The efforts known in the prior art have been effective in producing one or more forms of motion, but have been much less effective in producing lifelike motion and imparting a realistic appearance to decoys. Accordingly, they have been only marginally successful in providing the desired effect of attracting waterfowl. Many of the apparatus designs known in the prior art are complex in structure, adding to the cost of production and to the difficulty of use. There remains a need for a decoy apparatus that produces wing movement and foot movement in a lifelike manner so as to realistically simulate the appearance of live waterfowl and the manner of movement of waterfowl in the water.
The present invention provides a waterfowl decoy that addresses and overcomes the deficiencies and problems of the prior art by producing wing movement that effectively simulates the movement of live waterfowl and by producing foot movement that propels the decoy in the water with lifelike motion and appearance. The wing and foot movement exhibited by the decoy of the present invention is produced by a drive apparatus that is simple in structure and operation, inexpensive to produce, and easy to install in a hollow decoy body of conventional design.
The present invention utilizes a conventional floating decoy body, generally comprising a body with a hollow interior, a top, two opposing sides, a head end, and a tail end. An opening is formed in the top of the decoy body to provide access to the hollow interior for installation of the drive assembly, for installation and adjustment of wing assemblies and foot assemblies, and for operation of the drive assembly. The decoy body is also provided with a pair of wing slots formed in the opposing sides of the body through which a portion of each of two wing assemblies is inserted, and a pair of foot slots in the opposing sides of the body near the tail of the decoy body through which a portion of each of two foot assemblies is inserted.
The drive assembly of the present invention includes a drive means, preferably a battery powered electric motor, which drives a rotary disk to which a pair of wing assemblies and a pair of foot assemblies are attached. The motor includes an output shaft, and is oriented in the hollow interior of the body with the output shaft extending toward the top of the body, generally perpendicular to the planes defined by the wing slots and the foot slots. The rotary disk is connected to the output shaft so that it rotates in a plane generally parallel to the planes defined by the wing slots and foot slots. The rotary disk includes a plurality of apertures spaced between the center of the disk and its periphery. As the rotary disk turns, the wing assemblies and foot assemblies move in an oscillatory pattern to create the desired water splashing, wing movement and paddling actions. The characteristics of the wing movement and foot movement may be adjusted by changing the point of attachment of the wing and foot assemblies to the rotary disk.
The wing assemblies each include an elongate wing support and a wing, with the wing attached at one end of the wing support. The opposite end of the wing support is adapted to be attached to the rotary disk of the drive means, with the wing support extending through one of the wing slots formed in the body of the decoy. Similarly, the foot assemblies each include an elongate foot support, preferably of L-shaped configuration, and a foot. The foot is attached to the short leg of the L-shaped foot support. The long legs of the foot supports extends through the foot slots in the body of the decoy and are attached at their ends to the rotary disk of the drive means along with the wing supports.
When the assembled decoy is placed in a body of water the body of the decoy will float on the water with the wing assemblies disposed generally parallel to and above the surface and with the foot assemblies extending over and partially into the water, so that the feet are at least partially submerged in the water. When the drive means is activated the output shaft and attached disk rotate, causing the wing assemblies and foot assemblies to move in an oscillatory motion. The wing assemblies move over the surface of the water in a lifelike manner. Simultaneously, the feet move, creating ripples and splashes in the water and moving the decoy in the water. The range of movement of the wing and foot assemblies may be adjusted by changing the point of connection of those assemblies to the rotary disk of the drive means. Connecting the wing and foot assemblies at a point near the center of the disk results in the lowest range of movement, and the range of movement increases as the point of connection is moved toward the periphery of the disk. The preferred drive means of a battery operated electric motor will typically operate for several days before battery replacement is required, and replacement is a very simple operation. The unique combination of wing and foot movement provided by the decoy of the invention effectively simulates the movement of live birds and produces ripple and wake patterns in the water that are similar to those created by the movement of live birds.
If desired, the decoy of the invention may be set up and operated so as to generate only wing movement, by installing only the wing assemblies, or to generate only foot movement, by installing only the foot assemblies. Wing only and/or foot only operation may be desirable to vary the types of decoy movement displayed to live birds when several decoys are deployed in a group on a body of water.